Does the Beauty Industry Have a Major Problem?

The Site

From grown-up clubhouse The Wing to life-advice site OKReal, women-run spaces are deservedly having a moment, both online and IRL—and, as of yesterday, another exciting outlet has now emerged. The Part Co. is a website that showcases the beauty routines of people with multi-ethnic backgrounds, a group that the founders of Part Co. feel are by no means fully represented in the current beauty landscape.

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The project is the brainchild of sisters (and Angelenos) Emily and Hannah Maxwell, who conceived and built the brand to give their audience a glimpse into the lives of people who love to talk about their wellness routines, and deserve the "cool" badge just as much as anyone featured on sites like Man Repeller and Into the Gloss.

The Mission

Even in 2017, something like the color of a person's skin or their eye shape can determine people's perception of them, and these features can often fall victim to exoticism—and Emily and Hannah are no strangers to the objectification of ethnicity. "We're Chinese, Irish, Swedish, Dutch, and Norwegian," Emily says. "Growing up, we got a lot of people commenting on our ethnicity with things like, 'Oh, you look so exotic!' or 'You're so ethnically ambiguous!'"

This is Shannon, who is featured on the site and talks about how she gets her skin glowing! Photograph courtesy of The Part Co.

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From there, the sisters felt inspired to dismantle the very stereotypes that tend to hound people of mixed heritage. "I think we just felt that there was a bigger story behind it," Emily says. "Especially as we found that a lot of people we spoke to who are of mixed ethnic backgrounds had similar experiences."

"We really want it to be a spot for anyone, of any ethnicity, who just loves beauty and wellness." —Emily Maxwell

They found that there was a hole to fill in the beauty narrative. "There's a lack of representation online and [a lack of] blogs that are specifically for people that are mixed," Hannah says. "Well, they're hard to find! You have to really search for them, and I feel like a lot of beauty blogs are specific—for curly-haired women, for Asian women—but there's not much [for those] in between, like the curly-haired Asian woman," Emily adds.

This is Jordan, one of the site's first voices, who is both African-American and Mexican-American. Photograph courtesy of Brandon Stanciell

For now, the two are interviewing their friends in the hopes of eventually featuring more influencers and celebrities on the site. Either way, they're steadfast in their adherence to their original idea. "It's going to be a place for people to share their experiences and discuss how beauty relates to ethnicity," Emily says. "We really want it to be a spot for anyone, of any ethnicity, who just loves beauty and wellness."

The Other Fun Stuff

Sisters Emily and Hannah Maxwell, the forces behind The Part Co. Photograph courtesy of The Part Co.

Find out more about the Maxwell sisters!

Ages: Emily, 23; Hannah, 25

Their Day Jobs: "I recently graduated from school in Boston, and I work in the fashion district of Downtown LA," Emily says. "I work in finance at a television and motion picture studio," Hannah says.

Hannah's Number One Beauty Tip: "Even though it's super-cliché, drink lots of water!"

Emily's Number One Beauty Tip: "This took me a while to learn, but wash your makeup off before you go to sleep. It's definitely saved me from breaking out."